Connected fastener assembly

ABSTRACT

A connected fastener assembly is formed by fitting a shaft guide on a shaft section of each fastener, by connecting the fasteners using two connecting sheets made of a synthetic resin and disposed on upper and lower sides of the shaft guides. Since the connecting sheets have through holes through which the fasteners pass and connecting sections formed so as to be easy to bend or difficult to bend in the width direction, the connected fastener assembly can be formed into a straight type or a coil type. 
     In a connected fastener assembly, shaft sections of a plurality of fasteners are connected by a connecting band formed of a thin sheet of a synthetic resin. Ring-shaped retaining sections for retaining the shaft sections are formed at constant intervals in the connecting bands. The ring-shaped retaining sections are disposed so as to be overlaid on shaft guides made of soft materials and fitted on the shaft sections. Each of the shaft guides is formed into a cylindrical shape. An outside diameter of each of the ring-shaped retaining sections of the connecting band is larger than an outside diameter of the each of the shaft guides.

This is a divisional application of application Ser. No. 12/265,481,filed on Nov. 5, 2008, now U.S. Pat. No. 7,963,393, which isincorporated by reference herein in its entirety.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to a connected fastener assembly for usein a fastener driving tool powered by pneumatic pressure, fuel gas, etc.

BACKGROUND ART

A fastener driving tool for driving fasteners, such as nails, drivescrews, is a tool in which a connected fastener assembly formed ofmultiple connected fasteners is stored in a magazine and used so thatthe fasteners are driven continuously into workpieces.

Conventionally, as the connection configuration of the above-mentionedconnected fastener assembly, for example, a straight type in which thefasteners are connected straight, a type in which the fasteners areconnected and formed into a step-like shape and a coil type in which thefasteners are connected and wound into a coil are known.

Moreover, fasteners used to anchor wood to wood, to fasten liners orwood to concrete, to secure I-beams to thin steel sheets and to fastendenz glass (a plaster board-like material) to studs are usuallyconnected to one another and loaded into a fastener driving tool. Asmethods for connecting fasteners to form a connected fastener assembly,various methods are known: for example, a stick type connecting methodin which multiple fasteners are integrally connected to a straightconnecting band made of a synthetic resin, a wire connecting method inwhich the shaft sections of fasteners are connected using two parallelmetal wires by welding, and the so-called plastic sheet connectingmethod in which retaining pieces provided at constant intervals are bentin the same direction so as to protrude from the upper and lower ends ofa connecting band made of a synthetic resin and having a thin sheetshape and fasteners are inserted into the upper and lower retainingpieces. As an example of the synthetic resin connecting method, themethod disclosed in Patent documents 1 and 4 are known.

In addition, as an example of the plastic sheet connecting method, themethod disclosed in Patent documents 2 and 5 are known. Furthermore, amethod in which fasteners are connected using a connecting sheet made ofa synthetic resin is also known. This connecting sheet comprises shaftguides for allowing the shaft sections of fasteners to be passed throughand retained and connecting sections for connecting adjacent shaftguides (refer to Patent documents 6 and 7).

Furthermore, as fastener connecting means, connecting means having aconfiguration in which the upper and lower portions of a carrier havinga complicated shape such that a breakable upper portion is provided inthe upper portion of a cylindrical section into which the shaft sectionof a fastener is inserted are connected using a bridge is also known(refer to Patent document 3).

Since fasteners are often driven continuously in actual processing, itis preferable that a connected fastener assembly should be configured sothat a large quantity of fasteners can be loaded into a fastener drivingtool at a time. In this respect, connected fastener assembly accordingto the wire connecting method for winding into a coil or the plasticsheet connecting method are used advantageously. However, in the case ofthe connected fastener assembly according to the wire connecting method,wires are scattered at the time of driving, whereby there is a danger ofstriking and injuring human bodies and garbage is produced. Furthermore,the shaft sections of the fasteners are welded to wires in this method.In the case that the fasteners are hardened nails, for example, thestrength thereof is lowered at the welded portions by heat duringwelding. Therefore, when such nails are driven into high-strengthconcrete or the like, the nails are likely to buckle or fracture.Moreover, if the connected fastener assembly wound into a coil isdropped to the floor or ground inadvertently when the connected fastenerassembly is loaded into the magazine of a fastener driving tool, theexterior of the coil may be deformed. If the exterior is deformed, it isdifficult to restore the coil into its original shape. Besides, when theconnected fastener assembly wound into a coil is carried, a finger isinserted into the center hollow portion of the coil. In this case, thereis a danger that the finger is injured by the tip ends of the wires.

On the other hand, in the case of the connected fastener assemblyaccording to the plastic sheet connecting method, each fastener isdetached from the connecting band and driven at the time of driving. Itis thus necessary to form an ejection hole for ejecting the connectingband remaining in the nose section of a fastener driving tool. Hence,the strength of the nose section lowers, and the connecting band becomesgarbage and must be thrown away.

Furthermore, the connected fastener assembly obtained according to themethod disclosed in Patent documents 6 and 4 in which fasteners areconnected using a connecting sheet made of a synthetic resin is simplein structure. However, since the connecting band thereof is basicallyformed of a sheet material made of a synthetic resin, the strength ofthe ring-shaped retaining sections for allowing the shafts of thefasteners to be inserted is not very high. Hence, when the firstfastener of the connected fastener assembly is fed into the injectionsection (the nose section) of a fastener driving tool and is impacted byits driver, the fastener may tilt inside the injection section. Whenthis problem occurs, it is impossible for the ring-shaped retainingsection to properly control the attitude of the fastener so that thefastener does not tilt.

[Patent document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open PublicationNo. 2003-301824

[Patent document 2] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open PublicationNo. 2000-240622

[Patent document 3] Japanese Patent No. 2588812

[Patent document 4] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open PublicationNo. Sho 57-120713

[Patent document 5] Japanese Utility Model No. 2526455

[Patent document 6] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open PublicationNo. 2005-90723

[Patent document 7] Japanese Utility Model Application Laid-OpenPublication No. Hei 6-35623

However, the above-mentioned connection methods have problems. Forexample, in the case of the connected fastener assembly according to thewire connecting method, since the distance between the two wires isfixed, fasteners having short shafts cannot be connected. Furthermore,since the wires are apt to be deformed relatively easily, there is aproblem of shaft tangling in which the tip ends of the shafts ofadjacent fasteners are tangled with one another.

Moreover, in the case of the connected fastener assembly according tothe synthetic resin connection method, since the connecting band has acomplicated shape, there is a problem in which the connecting bandbreaks due to impact repeatedly applied at the time of fastener driving.

Besides, even in the case of the connected fastener assembly accordingto the plastic sheet connecting method, since the distance between theupper and lower retaining pieces is constant, short fasteners cannot beconnected.

Additionally, since the connecting means disclosed in Patent document 3is complicated in shape as a whole and can be produced only by extrusionmolding, there is a problem of high cost.

Still further, there are problems with respect to the connectionconfiguration. In the case of a fastener driving tool equipped with astraight magazine, only straight-type connected fastener assemblies canbe used, but coil-type connected fastener assemblies cannot be used.Conversely, in the case of a fastener driving tool equipped with acylindrical magazine, only coil-type connected fastener assemblies canbe used, but straight-type connected fastener assemblies cannot be used.Hence, connected fastener assemblies conforming to the type of afastener driving tool to be used must be supplied thereto. As a result,since different types of connection facilities are required depending onthe connection configuration of fasteners, the volume of production isdispersed, the operation rates of the connection facilities are reduced,and the production cost cannot be reduced.

In addition, in the case that the outside diameter of the shaft guide isthe same as that of the ring-shaped retaining section, when a connectedfastener assembly having this configuration is stored in a storage boxor loaded into a fastener driving tool, the connected fastener assemblyis wound into a coil as a whole and the coil is grasped and lifted byhand. At this time, a phenomenon may occur in which the center sideportion of the coil cannot be held with the outer circumferential sideportion thereof, and the center side portion drops due to its ownweight. If this phenomenon of center side dropping occurs, the coilhangs down loosely as a whole, and the connected fastener assembly mustbe rewound. This rewinding is troublesome and takes a long work time.

DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION

The present invention provides an innovative connected fastener assemblycapable of immediately solving problems, such as shaft tangling,connecting band breakage, failure to adaptation to fasteners havingshort shafts, associated with the connecting method and the connectionconfiguration of fasteners and capable of being produced at low cost byconnecting fasteners using cylindrical shaft guides and band-shapedconnecting sheets made of synthetic resins.

Furthermore, the present invention provides an innovative connectedfastener assembly which shaft guides properly control an attitude of afastener by fitting each of the shaft guides on around a shaft of thefastener and which the connected fastener assembly formed into a coilcan be lifted without causing dropping at a center side of the coil.

According to a first aspect of the invention, a connected fastenerassembly is provided with: a plurality of fasteners, cylindrical shaftguides fitted on shaft sections of the respective fasteners and twoconnecting sheets made of synthetic resins, wherein a first connectingsheet is disposed on an upper side of the shaft guides and a secondconnecting sheet is disposed on a lower sides of the shaft guides.

According to a second aspect of the invention, the connecting sheets mayhave through holes through which the fasteners pass and connectingsections which are connecting adjacent though holes and formed so as notto bend in the width direction.

According to a third aspect of the invention, the connecting sheets mayhave through holes through which the fasteners pass and connectingsections which are connecting adjacent though holes and formed so as tobend in the width direction.

According to a fourth aspect of the invention, a connected fastenerassembly is provided with: a plurality of fasteners, cylindrical shaftguides fitted on shaft sections of the respective fasteners, aconnecting band formed of a thin sheet of a synthetic resin andconnecting the shaft sections to each other and ring-shaped retainingsections formed at constant intervals in the connecting band, whereinthe ring-shaped retaining sections are disposed and overlaid on theshaft guides to retaining the shaft sections, and an outside diameter ofeach of the ring-shaped retaining sections of the connecting band islarger than an outside diameter of each of the shaft guides.

According to a fifth aspect of the invention, a connected fastenerassembly is provided with: a plurality of fasteners, cylindrical shaftguides fitted on shaft sections of the respective fasteners, aconnecting band formed of a thin sheet of a synthetic resin andconnecting the shaft sections to each other and ring-shaped retainingsections formed at constant intervals in the connecting band, whereinthe ring-shaped retaining sections are disposed and overlaid on theshaft guides to retaining the shaft sections, an outside diameter ofeach of the ring-shaped retaining sections of the connecting band isapproximately the same as an outside diameter of each of the shaftguides, and wherein the each of shaft guides includes engaging groovesformed on an outer circumferential face of the each of the shaft guidesin the circumferential direction.

According to a sixth aspect of the invention, a connected fastenerassembly is provided with: a plurality of fasteners, cylindrical shaftguides fitted on shaft sections of the respective fasteners, aconnecting band formed of a thin sheet of a synthetic resin andconnecting the shaft sections to each other and ring-shaped retainingsections formed at constant intervals in the connecting band, whereinthe ring-shaped retaining sections are disposed and overlaid on theshaft guides to retaining the shaft sections, an outside diameter ofeach of the ring-shaped retaining sections of the connecting band isapproximately the same as an outside diameter of each of the shaftguides, and wherein an extending fringe protruding outward is formed onan outer circumferential face of the shaft guides.

According to a seventh aspect of the invention, a connected fastenerassembly is provided with: a plurality of fasteners, shaft guides madeof soft materials and fitted on shaft sections of the respectivefasteners, a connecting band formed of a thin sheet of a synthetic resinand connecting the shaft sections of the plurality of fasteners to eachother ring-shaped retaining sections formed at constant intervals in theconnecting band and wherein each of shaft guides includes at least threeprotrusions formed on an outer circumferential face of the each of theshaft guides and protruding in a circumferential direction of the eachof the shaft guides and wherein the ring-shaped retaining sections aredisposed and overlaid on the shaft guides to retaining the shaftsections of the fasteners, and an outside diameter of each of thering-shaped retaining sections of the connecting band is smaller than anoutside diameter of each of the shaft guides having the protrusions.

Other aspects and advantages of the invention will be apparent from thefollowing description, the drawings and the claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a connected fastener assemblyaccording to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view showing part of the connectedfastener assembly.

FIG. 3 is a vertical sectional view showing part of the connectedfastener assembly.

FIG. 4 is a sectional view showing a state in which the first fastenerof the connected fastener assembly has been fed into the nose section ofa fastener driving tool.

FIG. 5 is a sectional view showing the connected fastener assemblyloaded into the fastener feeding passage of the magazine of the fastenerdriving tool.

FIG. 6 is a sectional view showing a feeding mechanism in the fastenerfeeding passage.

FIGS. 7( a) and 7(b) are explanatory views showing a state in which thefirst fastener in the nose section is driven and separated from thesecond fastener.

FIG. 8 is an explanatory view showing a fastener after driving.

FIG. 9 is a perspective view showing a connected fastener assemblyaccording to another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 10 is an exploded perspective view showing part of the connectedfastener assembly.

FIG. 11 is a perspective view showing the connected fastener assemblywound into a coil.

FIG. 12 is a side view showing the connection configuration of fastenershaving long shafts.

FIG. 13 is a perspective view showing a straight-type connected fastenerassembly.

FIG. 14 is a perspective view showing part of a connected fastenerassembly according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 15( a) is a plan view showing the connecting band of the connectedfastener assembly, and FIG. 15( b) is a perspective view showing theconnecting band.

FIG. 16 is a sectional view showing the injection section of a fastenerdriving tool.

FIG. 17 is an explanatory view showing the connected fastener assemblywound into a coil, cross-sectioned in the diametric direction.

FIG. 18 is a front view showing a fastener according to anotherembodiment.

FIG. 19 is a front view showing a fastener according to still anotherembodiment, partly cross-sectioned.

FIG. 20( a) is a perspective view showing a fastener and FIG. 20( b) isa perspective view showing a shaft guide according to yet still anotherembodiment.

FIG. 21 is an explanatory view showing the relationship between afastener on the inner circumferential side and a fastener on the outercircumferential side according to the above-mentioned embodiment.

FIG. 22 is a perspective view showing a connected fastener assemblyaccording to a further embodiment.

FIG. 23( a) is a perspective view showing a fastener and FIG. 23( b) isa perspective view showing a shaft guide according to theabove-mentioned embodiment.

FIG. 24( a) is a plan view showing a ring-shaped retaining section and ashaft guide and FIG. 24( b) is a partly cross-sectioned side viewshowing the ring-shaped retaining section and the shaft guide accordingto the above-mentioned embodiment.

FIG. 25( a) is a perspective view showing a fastener and FIG. 25( b) isa perspective view showing a shaft guide according to a still furtherembodiment.

EXPLANATIONS OF NUMERALS

-   A1, A2 connected fastener assemblies-   101 fastener-   102 shaft guide-   103, 104 connecting sheets-   6 a, 6 b through holes-   108 connecting section-   1 connected fastener assembly-   2 fastener-   3 connecting band-   4 ring-shaped retaining section-   8 shaft guide

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

Embodiments according to the present invention will be described belowon the basis of appended drawings.

In FIG. 1, reference code A1 designates a connected fastener assembly.This connected fastener assembly is formed by fitting a cylindricalshaft guide 102 on the shaft section of each of fasteners 101 and byconnecting these fasteners using band-shaped connecting sheets 103 and104 made of a synthetic resin. The connecting sheet 103 is disposed onan upper side of the shaft guides 102 and the connecting sheet 104 isdisposed on a lower side of the shaft guides 102.

The shaft guide 102 is made of a synthetic resin, such as polypropyleneor polyethylene, or aluminum, and is formed such that its outsidediameter is approximately the same as or slightly smaller than thediameter of the head section la of the fastener 101 and is slightlysmaller than the inside diameter of an injection nose section 105provided at the tip end of a fastener driving tool as shown in FIG. 4.With this configuration, when the fastener 101 reaches the injectionnose section of the fastener driving tool or the like and is drivenusing the driver 109 thereof, the attitude of the fastener 101 iscontrolled so as to be parallel with the axis of the nose section usingthe shaft guide 102. A material which does not scatter at the time ofdriving is selected as the material of the shaft guide 102.

The connecting sheets 103 and 104 are thin band-shaped sheets made ofsynthetic resins, and through holes 6 b approximately as large as thethrough holes 6 a of the shaft guide 102 are formed at equal intervalsin the connecting sheets 103 and 104. In addition, a slit-shaped slot107 is formed between the through holes 6 b. Connecting sections 108 areformed at both ends the slot 107, one connecting section at each end, inthe width direction of the connecting sheets 103 and 104. With thisconfiguration, the connecting sheets 103 and 104 have a structure whichdoes not bend in the width direction thereof.

When the fasteners 101 are connected, the through holes 6 b of theconnecting sheets 103 and 104 are aligned with the through holes 6 a ofthe shaft guides 102, and the shaft sections 1 b of the fasteners 101are press-fitted into the through holes 6 a and 6 b. Hence, thefasteners 101 are connected in a straight line via the connecting sheets103 and 104. The slot 107 and the connecting sections 108 are disposedbetween the adjacent fasteners 101. Furthermore, since the connectingsheet 103 is disposed on an upper side of the shaft guides 102 and theconnecting sheet 104 is disposed on a lower side of the shaft guides102, sufficiently high connection strength is obtained securely. Inaddition, since the connecting sheets 103 and 104 have a structure whichdoes not bend in the width direction thereof, the connected fastenerassembly A1 is formed into a straight-type connected fastener assembly(also referred to as a stick type).

Next, when the connected fastener assembly A1 configured as describedabove is used, the connected fastener assembly A1 is loaded into thestraight-shaped magazine of a fastener driving tool. At this time, stepsections 111 are formed so as to be opposed to each other on both sidewalls of the fastener feeding passage 110 of the magazine, and the lowerface of the shaft guide 102 of the connected fastener assembly A1 issupported using the step sections 111 as shown in FIG. 5.

Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 6, a feeding pawl 113 and a check pawl 114are disposed between both the side walls so as to be able to protrude.To feed the connected fastener assembly A1, the feeding pawl 113 ismoved forward and backward using a feeding apparatus not shown. Whenmoved forward, the feeding pawl 113 engages the shaft guides 102 of theconnected fastener assembly A1 and feeds the connected fastener assemblyA1 by one fastener. When moved backward, the feeding pawl 113 retractsfrom the fastener feeding passage 110. At the same time, the check pawl114 enters the fastener feeding passage 110 and engages the shaft guides102 to prevent the connected fastener assembly A1 from moving backward.In this way, the connected fastener assembly A1 is fed sequentiallybeginning with the first fastener 101 from the tip end of the magazineto the injection nose section 105 of the fastener driving tool. Sincethe shaft guide 102 of the first fastener 101 is formed such that itsdiameter is approximately the same as the inside diameter of the nosesection 105 as shown in FIG. 4, the shaft guide 102 is held stablyinside the nose section 105, whereby the shaft section of the fastener101 is also held in the axial direction of the nose section 105. In thisstate, the fastener driving tool is started, and the driver 109 isdriven so that its tip end impacts the head section la of the fastener101, whereby the fastener 101 is moved downward as shown in FIGS. 7( a)and 7(b). At this time, although the connecting sheets 103 and 104 forconnecting the first fastener 1 p to the second fastener 1 q of theconnected fastener assembly A1 are also pulled downward, since thesecond fastener 1 q is stably supported using the step sections 111 ofthe fastener feeding passage 110, the connecting sheets 103 and 104 arecut and separated securely at the connecting sections 108 of theconnecting sheets 103 and 104 in which stress concentration is apt tooccur. Furthermore, the attitude of the first fastener 1 p is stablyheld using the shaft guide 102 in the up and down direction. As aresult, the fastener 1 p does not tilt inside the nose section 105.

When the fastener 101 reaches the injection nose section of a fastenerdriving tool or the like and is driven using the driver 109, theattitude of the fastener 101 is controlled so as to be parallel with theaxis of the nose section using the shaft guide 102. Hence, the finishafter driving can be made excellent, and the load for driving can bereduced since fasteners, such as nails and pins, are driven straight.

The fastener 101 is usually a concrete pin. When the concrete pin isdriven into concrete, the shaft guide 102 and the connecting sheets 103and 104 separated from the shaft guide 102 are integrated and remaincompressed between the head section 1 a and the surface of the concreteas shown in FIG. 8. As a result, the broken pieces of the connectingsheets 103 and 104 and the shaft guides 102 are prevented fromscattering and contaminating work areas. Furthermore, since the shaftguides 102 and the connecting sheets 103 and 104, having beencompressed, are made of synthetic resins, they are positioned betweenthe lower face of the head section of the concrete pin and the surfaceof the concrete in a compressed and close contact state, thereby havingthe function of a washer and being capable of effectively preventingrainwater or the like from entering the pin holes in the concrete.

Moreover, although the connecting sections 108 of the connecting sheets103 and 104 are formed at both ends of the slot 107, one connectingsection at each end, the present invention is not limited to thisconfiguration. For example, a perforated line may also be formed.Furthermore, it may also possible that grooves are formed at constantintervals in the width direction of the connecting sheets 103 and 104and the groove portions are thin-walled so as to be cut off easily.Moreover, since the connecting sheets 103 and 104 are separate from theshaft guides 102, the breakable, material of the connecting sheets 103and 104 can be selected more easily than the material of theconventional integrated connecting band.

Next, FIGS. 9 and 10 show another embodiment of the connecting sheets103 and 104 for connecting the fasteners 101. In the connecting sheets103 and 104, circular sections 116 having the same outside diameter asthat of the shaft guides 102 are formed, and connecting sections 108,each being used to connect the adjacent circular sections 116, are madenarrow in width and formed along the connecting direction of thefasteners 101. Hence, the connecting sheets 103 and 104 have a structureeasy to bend in the width direction.

When the fasteners 101 are connected, the through holes 6 b of theconnecting sheets 103 and 104 are aligned with the through holes 6 a ofthe shaft guides 102, and the shaft sections lb are press-fitted intothe through holes 6 a and 6 b as in the case of the straight typedescribed above. Hence, the fasteners 101 are connected via theconnecting sheets 103 and 104. In addition, since the connecting section108 disposed between the adjacent fasteners 101 is formed so as to benarrow in width and fairly long in length, the connecting sheets 103 and104 have a structure easy to bend in the width direction. Hence, theconnected fastener assembly A1 can be bent in a direction orthogonal tothe connecting direction and formed into a coil, whereby a coil-typeconnected fastener assembly A2 can be produced as shown in FIG. 11.Since the connecting sheet 103 is disposed on an upper side of the shaftguides 102 and the connecting sheet 104 is disposed on a lower side ofthe shaft guides 102, the connected fastener assembly A2 is providedwith rigidity and can be wound into a coil.

Furthermore, when the connected fastener assembly A2 having theabove-mentioned configuration is used, the connected fastener assemblyA2 can be used in a manner similar to that of the embodiment describedearlier with respect to the feeding of the fasteners, the supporting ofthe fasteners inside the fastener feeding passage 110, the stableholding of the fastener inside the nose section, the secure breakage andseparation at the connecting section at the time of driving, thematerial of the shaft guide 102 and the changeability of the material ofthe shaft guide 102, except that the connected fastener assembly A2 iswound into a coil and loaded into a cylindrical magazine.

In the case of a long fastener 101 having a long shaft length, theconnection configuration comprising the shaft guide 102 and theconnecting sheets 103 and 104 should only be provided at the upper andlower portions of the fastener 101 as shown in FIG. 12. Furthermore, inthe case that short fasteners are connected, the height of the shaftguide 102 should only be reduced.

Moreover, in the case that the connecting sections 108 of the connectingsheets 103 and 104 are shortened, since the connecting sheets 103 and104 have a structure difficult to bend in the width direction, it ispossible to configure such a straight-type connected fastener assemblyA1 as shown in FIG. 13.

With the above-mentioned connection configuration, since the connectingsheet 103 is disposed on an upper side of the shaft guides 102 and theconnecting sheet 104 is disposed on a lower side of the shaft guides102, the entire rigidity of the connected fastener assembly is improved,and high connection strength can be obtained securely. Furthermore,since the fasteners 101 are inserted into the shaft guides 102 andarranged properly, shaft tangling or the like does not occur.

Moreover, since the shape of the shaft guide 102 is simpler than theshaft guide according to the prior art and it is not necessary toconnect the adjacent shaft guides 102 to each other in the stage ofmolding, it is not particularly necessary to provide fragile portions,whereby the shaft guides 102 can be obtained by cutting off a long tubeformed by extrusion molding. The connecting sheets 103 and 104 can alsobe produced simply by press working. Since the shapes of the componentsare simple as described above, the components can also be molded easily.Hence, the production cost of the connected fastener assembly can bereduced.

Moreover, the straight-type connected fastener assembly A1 or thecoil-type connected fastener assembly A2 can be produced by simplychanging the connecting sheets 103 and 104. Still further, even in thecase of fasteners 101 of various sizes, connected fastener assembliescan be produced without changing production facilities by simplyadjusting the thickness and the inside diameter of the shaft guide 102and the width of the connecting sheets 103 and 104 depending on theshaft length and diameter of the fastener 101. Hence, the connectedfastener assemblies A1 and A2 of different types can be produced usingthe same production facilities of the same factory, regardless of theconnection method and the connection configuration of the fasteners. Asa result, the productivity can be improved, and the production cost ofthe connected fastener assembly can be reduced remarkably.

In addition, since the shaft guide 102 and the connecting sheets 103 and104 are all simple in shape and can be improved in strength easilydepending on the usage conditions and the shaft guides 102 and theconnecting sheets 103 and 104 are formed as separate components, no loadis directly applied to the shaft guides 102 of the adjacent fasteners101. Hence, breakage hardly occurs in the connecting bands.

Furthermore, with the connection configuration described above, theheight of the shaft guide 102 can be changed depending on the shaftlength of the fastener, whereby short fasteners 101 can also beconnected similarly. Moreover, the shaft guide 102 may also be made of amaterial that is easy to break upon impact. In this case, the shaftguide 102 breaks and scatters when the fastener 101 is driven.Conventionally, small nails, ornamental nails, etc. being used for theproduction of coffins, family alters, etc. are obliged to be driven byhand because of their short lengths and cannot be connected because oftheir short lengths. However, with the connection configurationdescribed above, even such fasteners as having short lengths can beconnected. Still further, since the shaft guide 102 is made of amaterial which scatters upon impact at the time of driving, the state ofthe nails after driven into coffins, family alters, etc. is superb, andthe finish after driving is excellent.

In FIG. 14, numeral 1 designates a connected fastener assembly. Thisconnected fastener assembly 1 is formed by connecting the shaft sections2 b of multiple fasteners 2 (concrete pins) using connecting bands 3.The connecting band 3 is obtained by press molding a band-shaped thinsheet made of a synthetic resin, such as polyethylene, wherein aring-shaped retaining section 4 for allowing the shaft section 2 b ofthe fastener 2 to be inserted and a connecting section 5 for connectingthe adjacent ring-shaped retaining sections 4 are formed continuously asshown in FIGS. 15( a) and 15(b).

The ring-shaped retaining section 4 is circular in outer shape and isformed to have the same size as that of the head section 2 a of thefastener 2. A fitting hole 6 for allowing the shaft section 2 b of thefastener 2 to be fitted therein is formed at the center portion of thering-shaped retaining section 4.

The connecting section 5 is used to connect the adjacent ring-shapedretaining sections 4 and to retain the distance between the adjacentring-shaped retaining sections 4. The connecting section 5 is providedat a position offset from the center line P connecting the centers ofthe adjacent fasteners 2 (or shaft guides).

Numeral 8 designates a shaft guide. This shaft guide 8 is a slightlysoft cylindrical member made of a synthetic resin or rubber, and itsoutside diameter is smaller than that of the ring-shaped retainingsection 4 of the connecting band 3. The shaft guide 8 is fitted on theshaft section 2 b of the fastener 2, and the ring-shaped retainingsection 4 of the connecting band 3 is disposed on each of the upper andlower sides of the shaft guide 8.

As shown in FIG. 16, the outside diameter of the ring-shaped retainingsection 4 is approximately the same as the inside diameter of thecylindrical injection section 10 of a fastener driving tool, and theoutside diameter of the shaft guide 8 is slightly smaller than theinside diameter of the injection section 10.

In the case that the connected fastener assembly 1 configured asdescribed above is wound into a coil, when the winding is performed sothat the head sections 2 a of the fasteners 2 on the inner side makecontact with those on the outer side, the density of the fasteners 2becomes low. For the purpose of solving this problem, the connectedfastener assembly 1 is wound so that the head section 2 a of thefastener 2 on the outer side slightly enters below the head section 2 aof the fastener 2 on the inner side as shown in FIG. 17. Hence, the coilis formed such that the center side becomes high and the outside becomeslow. In this case, since the connected fastener assembly 1 is wound sothat the head section 2 a of the fastener 2 on the outer side slightlyenters below the head section 2 a of the fastener 2 on the inner side,the connecting band 3 is also wound so that the outer fringe of thering-shaped retaining section 4 of the fastener 2 on the outer sideslightly enters below the outer fringe of the ring-shaped retainingsection 4 of the fastener 2 on the inner side and is overlappedtherewith. Hence, when the coil is placed as a whole on a floor face orthe like, the center portion O of the coil floats from the floor face orthe like. However, since the ring-shaped retaining sections 4 of theconnecting band 3 are overlapped with each other as described above, thefasteners 2 on the inner side are supported by the fasteners 2 on theouter side. Hence, the center side portion of the coil is supported bythe outer side portion of the coil and does not drop. Therefore, whenthe connected fastener assembly 1 wound into a coil is lifted, the coilis not deformed.

Furthermore, when the first fastener 2 of the connected fastenerassembly 1 is fed into the injection section 10 of a fastener drivingtool and is impacted by its driver 11, the shaft guide 8 controls thefastener 2 so that the attitude of the fastener 2 does not tilt so muchas shown in FIG. 16. Hence, the fastener 2 is guided by the shaft guide8 without tilting significantly and driven into a workpiece securely.

Still further, although the ring-shaped retaining sections 4 and theshaft guide 8 are driven together with the fastener 2 when the fastener2 is driven, since the ring-shaped retaining sections 4 and the shaftguide 8 are overlaid with the rear side of the head section 2 a of thefastener 2 in a flattened state and is not exposed to the outside, theappearance of the fastener 2 after the driving is excellent.

In addition, since the connecting section 5 is provided at a positionoffset from the center line P connecting the centers of the adjacentfasteners 2, the length of the connecting section 5 is longer than thatof the connecting section that is provided along the center line Palthough the distance between the ring-shaped retaining sections 4 isthe same. In the case that the length of the connecting section 5 islong, the connecting section 5 can be bent at an acute angle. Hence,when the connecting band 3 is wound into a coil, the connecting sections5 can be bent and the connecting band 3 can be wound so that thediameter of the coil at the start of winding on the center side of thecoil becomes small, and the strength of the connecting sections 5 in thebent state is obtained securely. Besides, since the distance between thering-shaped retaining sections 4 is not required to be lengthened, asufficient quantity of the fasteners 2 can be connected as a whole.Furthermore, since the connecting section 5 is broken and thering-shaped retaining sections 4 are held together with the shaft guide8 between the head section 2 a of the fastener 2 and the workpiece in acompressed state at the time of driving the fastener 2, the connectingsection 5 and the ring-shaped retaining sections 4 are not scattered anddo not produce garbage at the time of driving. Moreover, since the nosesection of the fastener driving tool is not required to be provided witha hole for ejecting the connecting bands 3, the strength of the noseportion is not impaired.

Still further, when the connecting band 3 is wound into a coil, theconnecting sections 5 are offset on the outer circumferential side ofthe coil. Hence, the bending radius of the connecting sections 5 whenthe connecting band 3 is begun to be wound into a coil is smaller thanthat in the case that the connecting sections 5 are offset on theopposite side. Therefore, the connecting band 3 having the connectingsections 5 can sufficiently meet conditions required for winding theconnecting band 3 into a coil having a small diameter at the start ofwinding.

The configuration in which the outside diameter of the ring-shapedretaining section 4 of the connecting band 3 is made larger than theoutside diameter of the shaft guide 8 may be a configuration in which asingle connecting band is used and the outside diameter of thering-shaped retaining section 4 thereof is made larger than the outsidediameter of the shaft guide 8 as shown in FIG. 18. Furthermore, theconfiguration may be a configuration in which an extending fringe 15protruding outward is formed on the outer circumferential face of theshaft guide 8 as shown in FIG. 19. In these configurations, when theconnected fastener assembly 1 is wound into a coil as shown in FIG. 17,the ring-shaped retaining section 4 or the extending fringe 15 of theshaft guide 8 of the fastener 2 on the inner circumferential side ispartly overlapped with the ring-shaped retaining section 4 or theextending fringe 15 of the shaft guide 8 of the fastener 2 on the outercircumferential side in the up-down direction. Hence, when the wholecoil is lifted, since part of the ring-shaped retaining section 4 or theextending fringe 15 on the inner circumferential side engages part ofthe ring-shaped retaining section 4 or the extending fringe 15 on theouter circumferential side and is supported thereby, the center sideportion of the coil does not drop, and the connected fastener assembly 1is maintained in the shape of a coil as a whole. As a result, theconnected fastener assembly 1 can be stored and loaded smoothly.

Furthermore, another embodiment of the connection structure in which thecenter side of the coil hardly drops is shown in FIGS. 20( a) and 20(b).In the case of the fastener 2 shown in the figures, the outside diameterof the ring-shaped retaining section 4 of the connecting band 3 isapproximately the same as the outside diameter the shaft guide 8, andengaging grooves 12 are formed on the outer circumferential face of theshaft guide 8 in the circumferential direction. The height of theengaging groove 12 is larger than the sum of the thickness of the outerfringe 13 above the engaging groove 12 and the thickness of thering-shaped retaining section 4 and is also larger than the sum of thethickness of the outer fringe 14 below the engaging groove 12 and thethickness of the ring-shaped retaining section 4. It is preferable thatthe engaging grooves 12 should be formed at intervals on thecircumferential face of the shaft guide 8.

In the configuration described above, when the connected fastenerassembly 1 is wound into a coil, the outer fringe 13 above the engaginggroove 12 of the shaft guide 8 and the ring-shaped retaining section 4on the outer circumferential side engage the engaging groove 12 of theshaft guide 8 on the inner circumferential side as shown in FIG. 21.Hence, when the whole coil is lifted, since part of the shaft guide 8 onthe inner circumferential side engages part of the shaft guide 8 on theouter circumferential side and is supported thereby, the center sideportion of the coil does not drop, and the connected fastener assembly 1is maintained in the shape of a coil as a whole.

Moreover, a still another embodiment of the connection structure inwhich the center side of the coil hardly drops is shown in FIG. 22. Thebasic structure of the connected fastener assembly 1 according to thisembodiment is the same as that of the connected fastener assembly 1shown in FIG. 14 and other figures. The ring-shaped retaining sections 4for retaining the shaft sections 2 b of the fasteners 2 are formed atconstant intervals in the connecting band 3. The ring-shaped retainingsections 4 are disposed on the upper and lower portions of the shaftguide 8 made of a soft material and fitted on the shaft section 2 b ofthe fastener 2.

The above-mentioned shaft guide 8 is formed into the shape of a gearhaving a cylindrical body 8 a and seven protrusions 15 formed on theouter circumferential face of cylindrical body 8 a as shown in FIGS. 23(a) and 23(b). The outside diameter of the shaft guide 8 having theprotrusions 15 is approximately the same as the outside diameter of thehead section 2 a of the fasteners 2. Furthermore, the outside diameterof the ring-shaped retaining section 4 of the connecting band 3 islarger than the outside diameter of the cylindrical body 8 a and smallerthan the outside diameter of the shaft guide 8 having the protrusions15.

In the above-mentioned configuration, in the case that the connectedfastener assembly 1 is wound into a coil, since the outside diameter ofthe ring-shaped retaining section 4 of the connecting band 3 is smallerthan the outside diameter of the shaft guide 8 having the protrusions15, when the cylindrical body 8 a of the shaft guide 8 on the innercircumferential side comes close to the cylindrical body 8 a of theshaft guide 8 on the outer circumferential side such that theprotrusions 15 of the respective shaft guides 8 mesh with each other asshown in FIGS. 24( a) and 24(b), overlapping portions are formed in theup-down direction at the ring-shaped retaining section 4 disposed on thecylindrical body 8 a on the inner circumferential side and at thering-shaped retaining section 4 disposed on the cylindrical body 8 a onthe outer circumferential side. Hence, when the whole coil is lifted,since part of the ring-shaped retaining section 4 on the innercircumferential side engages part of the ring-shaped retaining section 4on the outer circumferential side and is supported thereby, the centerside portion of the coil does not drop, and the connected fastenerassembly 1 is maintained in the shape of a coil as a whole. As a result,the connected fastener assembly 1 can be stored and loaded smoothly.

Furthermore, when the first fastener 2 is fed into the injection sectionof a fastener driving tool, since the outside diameter of the shaftguide 8 having the protrusions 15 is approximately the same as theoutside diameter of the head section 2 a of the fasteners 2, the shaftguide 8 is in a state of being fitted in the injection section, and theattitude of the fasteners 2 becomes stable and does not tilt, just as inthe case shown in FIG. 16. Hence, when the fastener 2 is impacted by thedriver of the driving tool, the shaft guide 8 properly controls theattitude of the fasteners 2. Hence, the fastener 2 is guided by theshaft guide 8 without tilting and driven into a workpiece accurately andsecurely.

At least three protrusions 15 should be formed on the outercircumferential face of the cylindrical body 8 a of the shaft guide 8 inthe circumferential direction. However, the shape of the shaft guide 8is not limited to the shape of the gear shown in FIGS. 22 to 24. Forexample, the shaft guide 8 may be formed into such a polygonal shape asshown in FIGS. 25( a) and 25(b).

While the invention has been described in connection with the exemplaryembodiments, it will be obvious to those skilled in the art that variouschanges and modifications may be made therein without departing form thepresent invention, and it is aimed, therefore, to cover in the appendedclaim all such changes and modifications as fall within the true spiritand scope of the present invention.

This application claims properties from Japanese Patent applicationfiled on Nov. 6, 2008 (JP2007-288919) and Japanese Patent applicationfiled on Nov. 6, 2008 (JP2007-288921), the contents of those are herebyincorporated by references.

INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY

The present invention is applicable to a connected fastener assembly foruse in a fastener driving tool.

1. A connected fastener assembly comprising: a plurality of fasteners;cylindrical shaft guides fitted on shaft sections of the respectivefasteners, each of the shaft guides having an upper surface and a lowersurface; and two connecting sheets made of synthetic resins, wherein afirst connecting sheet is disposed on the upper surface of the shaftguides and a second connecting sheet is disposed on the lower surface ofthe shaft guides.
 2. The connected fastener assembly according to claim1, wherein the connecting sheets have through holes through which thefasteners pass and connecting sections which are connecting adjacentthrough holes and formed so as not to bend in the width direction. 3.The connected fastener assembly according to claim 1, wherein theconnecting sheets have through holes through which the fasteners passand connecting sections which are connecting adjacent though throughholes and formed so as to bend in the width direction.
 4. The connectedfastener assembly according to claim 1, further comprising: ring-shapedretaining sections formed at constant intervals in the connectingsheets; wherein the ring-shaped retaining sections are disposed andoverlaid on the shaft guides to retain the shaft sections, and anoutside diameter of each of the ring-shaped retaining sections is largerthan an outside diameter of each of the shaft guides.